Visualization of audio announcements using augmented reality

ABSTRACT

Approaches presented herein enable communication of audio messages using augmented reality. More specifically, a set of captured messages are analyzed to determine, for each message of the set of messages, whether the message is relevant to a user. At least one message of the set of messages is associated with a real-world object over which to display the at least one message in an augmented reality environment. A time limit is assigned to the at least one message based on the analyzed relevance to the user. In the case that a current time is within the time limit, the at least one message is displayed on a display of a mobile device associated with the user when a camera of the mobile device is directed at the real-world object associated with the at least one message.

RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS

This patent document is a continuation of, and claims the benefit of,co-pending and co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/361,621,filed Mar. 22, 2019, which is a continuation of commonly owned U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/151,606, filed May 11, 2016, issued Jul.2, 2019 as U.S. Pat. No. 10,339,933.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates generally to communications and, morespecifically, to using augmented reality to present announcements.

BACKGROUND

Many public areas, including public transportation services, rely onaudio announcements to convey information to a public. For example, atransportation service, such as a train or bus station, an airport, or ametro, may broadcast announcements over a speaker system. Often,announcements are broadcast in a particular vicinity related to thecontent of the announcement. For example, boarding announcements madefrom or related to Gate 1 are usually only broadcast in the localvicinity near Gate 1. Further, some announcements may directly relate toa specific person, for example a request for that person to come to aspecific gate. However, a person may miss an announcement that wasintended for the person to hear, for example, because the person is at adifferent location, hearing impaired, distracted, or because theannouncement cannot be heard over other sounds in the vicinity.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,286,070 discloses: “captur[ing] media assets of livepresentations comprising a session, including image data of sequentiallypresented visual aids accompanying the live presentations and audiodata.”

U.S. Pat. No. 8,731,919 discloses: “[a] recorder to capture audio speechfrom at least one [ ] devices, the recorder stores [ ] audio speech asdata in [a] database system, and [a] recognition engine subsequentlyretrieves the audio speech data, transcribes the audio speech data intotext, and stores the text and data associating the text data with atleast the audio speech data in the database system for subsequentretrieval by a search application.

U.S. Patent Application Publication 2012/0035925 discloses: “automaticcapture and population of task and list items in an electronic task orlist surface via voice or audio input through an audio recording-capablemobile computing device”.

U.S. Patent Application Publication 2011/0252101 discloses: “deliveringcommunications associated with delivery conditions in which theoccurrence of the delivery condition is determined by monitoringinformation received from a plurality of sources via multiplecommunication channels.”

U.S. Pat. No. 7,440,900 discloses: “a distributed data processoraccess[ing] [ ] voice messages and extract[ing] desired information fromthe voice messages. The data processor then augments the data stored inthe voice message data store with the extracted information. [A] userinterface component provides user access to the voice messages with theaugmented data.”

WIPO International Patent Application WO/2001/092910 discloses:“determining the locations of a plurality of users within apredetermined space” by “allocating an electronic tag having anidentifier to each user, each tag being responsive to a predeterminedinterrogation signal to transmit a response signal from which thelocation of the tag within the predetermined space can be determined.”

SUMMARY

In general, embodiments described herein provide for communicating audiomessages using augmented reality. More specifically, a set of capturedmessages are analyzed to determine, for each message of the set ofmessages, whether the message is relevant to a user. At least onemessage of the set of messages is associated with a real-world objectover which to display the at least one message in an augmented realityenvironment. A time limit is assigned to the at least one message basedon the analyzed relevance to the user. In the case that a current timeis within the time limit, the at least one message is displayed on adisplay of a mobile device associated with the user when a camera of themobile device is directed at the real-world object associated with theat least one message.

One aspect of the present invention includes a method of communicatingaudio messages using augmented reality, comprising: analyzing a set ofcaptured messages to determine, for each message of the set of messages,whether the message is relevant to a user; associating at least onemessage of the set of messages with a real-world object over which todisplay the at least one message in an augmented reality environment;assigning a time limit to the at least one message based on the analyzedrelevance to the user; and displaying, in the case that a current timeis within the time limit, the at least one message on a display of amobile device associated with the user when a camera of the mobiledevice is directed at the real-world object associated with the at leastone message.

Another aspect of the present invention includes a computer system forcommunicating audio messages using augmented reality, the computersystem comprising: a memory medium comprising program instructions; abus coupled to the memory medium; and a processor, for executing theprogram instructions, coupled to an augmented reality announcement toolvia the bus that when executing the program instructions causes thesystem to: analyze a set of captured messages to determine, for eachmessage of the set of messages, whether the message is relevant to auser; associate at least one message of the set of messages with areal-world object over which to display the at least one message in anaugmented reality environment; assign a time limit to the at least onemessage based on the analyzed relevance to the user; and display, in thecase that a current time is within the time limit, the at least onemessage on a display of a mobile device associated with the user when acamera of the mobile device is directed at the real-world objectassociated with the at least one message.

Yet another aspect of the present invention includes a computer programproduct for communicating audio messages using augmented reality, thecomputer program product comprising a computer readable storage device,and program instructions stored on the computer readable storage device,to: analyze a set of captured messages to determine, for each message ofthe set of messages, whether the message is relevant to a user;associate at least one message of the set of messages with a real-worldobject over which to display the at least one message in an augmentedreality environment; assign a time limit to the at least one messagebased on the analyzed relevance to the user; and display, in the casethat a current time is within the time limit, the at least one messageon a display of a mobile device associated with the user when a cameraof the mobile device is directed at the real-world object associatedwith the at least one message.

Yet still another aspect of the present invention includes a method forcommunicating audio messages using augmented reality, comprising:providing a computer infrastructure that includes at least one computerdevice. The computer device operates to perform the steps of: analyzinga set of captured messages to determine, for each message of the set ofmessages, whether the message is relevant to a user; associating atleast one message of the set of messages with a real-world object overwhich to display the at least one message in an augmented realityenvironment; assigning a time limit to the at least one message based onthe analyzed relevance to the user; and displaying, in the case that acurrent time is within the time limit, the at least one message on adisplay of a mobile device associated with the user when a camera of themobile device is directed at the real-world object associated with theat least one message.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of this invention will be more readilyunderstood from the following detailed description of the variousaspects of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows an architecture in which the invention can be implementedaccording to illustrative embodiments;

FIG. 2 shows a more detailed system architecture for visualization ofaudio announcements using augmented reality (AR) according toillustrative embodiments;

FIG. 3 shows an implementation of an audio announcements visualizationprocess using AR according to illustrative embodiments; and

FIG. 4 shows a process flowchart for visualization of audioannouncements using AR according to illustrative embodiments.

The drawings are not necessarily to scale. The drawings are merelyrepresentations, not intended to portray specific parameters of theinvention. The drawings are intended to depict only typical embodimentsof the invention, and therefore should not be considered as limiting inscope. In the drawings, like numbering represents like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Illustrative embodiments will now be described more fully herein withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which illustrativeembodiments are shown. It will be appreciated that this disclosure maybe embodied in many different forms and should not be construed aslimited to the illustrative embodiments set forth herein. Rather, theseembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete and will fully convey the scope of this disclosure to thoseskilled in the art.

Furthermore, the terminology used herein is for the purpose ofdescribing particular embodiments only and is not intended to belimiting of this disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms “a”,“an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unlessthe context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, the use of theterms “a”, “an”, etc., do not denote a limitation of quantity, butrather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items.Furthermore, similar elements in different figures may be assignedsimilar element numbers. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises” and/or “comprising”, or “includes” and/or “including”, whenused in this specification, specify the presence of stated features,regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, butdo not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,regions, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/orgroups thereof.

Unless specifically stated otherwise, it may be appreciated that termssuch as “processing,” “detecting,” “determining,” “evaluating,”“receiving,” or the like, refer to the action and/or processes of acomputer or computing system, or similar electronic data center device,that manipulates and/or transforms data represented as physicalquantities (e.g., electronic) within the computing system's registersand/or memories into other data similarly represented as physicalquantities within the computing system's memories, registers or othersuch information storage, transmission or viewing devices. Theembodiments are not limited in this context.

As stated above, embodiments described herein provide for visualizationof audio announcements or messages using augmented reality (AR).Specifically, an audio system captures a set of broadcast audioannouncements or messages at an originating location associated with auser as a set of audio files, which a speech-to-text transcribertranscribes to text. A natural language processing tool analyzes thetranscribed text to determine, for each announcement, whether theannouncement is relevant to the user. Relevant announcements areforwarded to a mobile device of the user. The user may access, in an ARenvironment, the set of announcements via a set of icons to display textof an announcement or to play audio of an announcement.

The inventors of the present invention have discovered severalrestrictions of current methods of audio announcements and messages.More specifically, many public areas, including public transportationservices, such as a train or bus station, an airport, or a metro, relyon broadcast audio announcements over a speaker system to conveyinformation to a public. However, a user may miss a pertinentannouncement for a variety of reasons, such as: being in the wronglocation (e.g., a Gate 15 announcement is only made in the vicinity ofGate 15, but the user is at incorrect Gate 51), or being unable to hearthe announcement (e.g., an announcement may mask other announcements,music in a terminal may drown out announcements, or a user may bewearing headphones, hard of hearing, or not paying attention).Furthermore, announcements are often broadcast only in a particularvicinity related to the content of the announcement (e.g., a reason fora plane's delay or an expecting boarding time at Gate 1 are onlybroadcast near Gate 1). Further, some announcement may directly relateto a specific user (e.g., a request for a specific user to come to aspecific gate). However, current speaker broadcast systems fail toprovide a way to alert a specific user of a specific announcement thatis pertinent to them. Current speaker broadcast systems also fail toprovide a way for a user to replay or re-hear announcements that havebeen missed.

The approaches described herein contain numerous advantages over presentmethods including, but not limited to, visualization of audioannouncements and messages using augmented reality (AR). Augmentedreality is a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-worldenvironment whose elements are augmented or supplemented bycomputer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics, or GPSdata. In an AR environment, technology is used to enhance a user'scurrent perception of reality. For example, technologies such ascomputer vision and object recognition permit information about thesurrounding real world of the user to become interactive and bedigitally manipulated. Augmentation is conventionally in real-time andin semantic context with environmental elements in which informationabout the environment and its objects is overlaid on the real world.

Approaches described herein further include presenting a set ofannouncements, which have been transcribed from audio to text, to a userin an AR environment. This offers the advantage of permitting a user toreview prior announcements that the user may have missed. Moreover,approaches presented herein describe applying a natural languageanalysis to a set of announcements in order to categorize theannouncements. A selection of announcements can be presented to a userbased on, but not limited to, a relevance of the announcements to theuser, a location of the user, or a request of the user. The ARenvironment further offers the advantage of permitting a user tointeract with a visualization of an announcement overlaid in a realenvironment (e.g., a train station, an airport). This interaction caninclude providing an identity of an announcement by a category,providing a user with a synopsis of the announcement, and/or providingtext or audio of the announcement. Accordingly, a user can determinewhat announcements have been missed and what announcements the userwould like to read or hear repeated.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a computerized implementation 10 of anembodiment for visualization of audio announcements using AR will beshown and described. Computerized implementation 10 is only one exampleof a suitable implementation and is not intended to suggest anylimitation as to the scope of use or functionality of embodiments of theinvention described herein. Regardless, computerized implementation 10is capable of being implemented and/or performing any of thefunctionality set forth hereinabove.

In computerized implementation 10, there is a computer system 12, whichis operational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing system environments or configurations. Examples of well-knowncomputing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may besuitable for use with computer system 12 include, but are not limitedto, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thin clients,thick clients, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems,microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmable consumerelectronics, network PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframe computersystems, and distributed cloud computing environments that include anyof the above systems or devices, and the like.

This is intended to demonstrate, among other things, that the presentinvention could be implemented within a network environment (e.g., theInternet, a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), avirtual private network (VPN), etc.), a cloud computing environment, acellular network, or on a stand-alone computer system. Communicationthroughout the network can occur via any combination of various types ofcommunication links. For example, the communication links can includeaddressable connections that may utilize any combination of wired and/orwireless transmission methods. Where communications occur via theInternet, connectivity could be provided by conventional TCP/IPsockets-based protocol, and an Internet service provider could be usedto establish connectivity to the Internet. Still yet, computer system 12is intended to demonstrate that some or all of the components ofimplementation 10 could be deployed, managed, serviced, etc., by aservice provider who offers to implement, deploy, and/or perform thefunctions of the present invention for others.

Computer system 12 is intended to represent any type of computer systemthat may be implemented in deploying/realizing the teachings recitedherein. Computer system 12 may be described in the general context ofcomputer system executable instructions, such as program modules, beingexecuted by a computer system. Generally, program modules may includeroutines, programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and soon, that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. In this particular example, computer system 12 represents anillustrative system for visualization of audio announcements using AR.It should be understood that any other computers implemented under thepresent invention may have different components/software, but canperform similar functions.

Computer system 12 in computerized implementation 10 is shown in theform of a general-purpose computing device. The components of computersystem 12 may include, but are not limited to, one or more processors orprocessing units 16, a system memory 28, and a bus 18 that couplesvarious system components including system memory 28 to processor 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnects (PCI) bus.

Processing unit 16 refers, generally, to any apparatus that performslogic operations, computational tasks, control functions, etc. Aprocessor may include one or more subsystems, components, and/or otherprocessors. A processor will typically include various logic componentsthat operate using a clock signal to latch data, advance logic states,synchronize computations and logic operations, and/or provide othertiming functions. During operation, processing unit 16 collects androutes signals representing inputs and outputs between external devices14 and input devices (not shown). The signals can be transmitted over aLAN and/or a WAN (e.g., T1, T3, 56 kb, X.25), broadband connections(ISDN, Frame Relay, ATM), wireless links (802.11, Bluetooth, etc.), andso on. In some embodiments, the signals may be encrypted using, forexample, trusted key-pair encryption. Different systems may transmitinformation using different communication pathways, such as Ethernet orwireless networks, direct serial or parallel connections, USB,Firewire®, Bluetooth®, or other proprietary interfaces. (Firewire is aregistered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Bluetooth is a registeredtrademark of Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG)).

In general, processing unit 16 executes computer program code, such asprogram code for visualization of audio announcements using AR, which isstored in memory 28, storage system 34, and/or program/utility 40. Whileexecuting computer program code, processing unit 16 can read and/orwrite data to/from memory 28, storage system 34, and program/utility 40.

Computer system 12 typically includes a variety of computer systemreadable media. Such media may be any available media that is accessibleby computer system 12, and it includes both volatile and non-volatilemedia, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia, (e.g., VCRs, DVRs, RAID arrays, USB hard drives, optical diskrecorders, flash storage devices, and/or any other data processing andstorage elements for storing and/or processing data). By way of exampleonly, storage system 34 can be provided for reading from and writing toa non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media (not shown and typicallycalled a “hard drive”). Although not shown, a magnetic disk drive forreading from and writing to a removable, non-volatile magnetic disk(e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical disk drive for reading from orwriting to a removable, non-volatile optical disk such as a CD-ROM,DVD-ROM, or other optical media can be provided. In such instances, eachcan be connected to bus 18 by one or more data media interfaces. As willbe further depicted and described below, memory 28 may include at leastone program product having a set (e.g., at least one) of program modulesthat are configured to carry out the functions of embodiments of theinvention.

Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmittedusing any appropriate medium including, but not limited to, wireless,wireline, optical fiber cable, radio-frequency (RF), etc., or anysuitable combination of the foregoing.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation. Memory28 may also have an operating system, one or more application programs,other program modules, and program data. Each of the operating system,one or more application programs, other program modules, and programdata or some combination thereof, may include an implementation of anetworking environment. Program modules 42 generally carry out thefunctions and/or methodologies of embodiments of the invention asdescribed herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 24, etc.;one or more devices that enable a consumer to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via I/O interfaces22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 can communicate with one ormore networks such as a local area network (LAN), a general wide areanetwork (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g., the Internet) via networkadapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20 communicates with the othercomponents of computer system/server 12 via bus 18. It should beunderstood that although not shown, other hardware and/or softwarecomponents could be used in conjunction with computer system/server 12.Examples include, but are not limited to: microcode, device drivers,redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems,tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

As discussed further below, embodiments of the present invention providea method and system for augmenting audio announcements/messages, forexample at an airport, bus or train station, or metro, so that a usermay see, in an AR environment, which announcements the user has missed,and may replay announcements of interest to the user. In someembodiments, this augmentation occurs in the location where theannouncement was made. In further embodiments, a user may be notified ofaudio announcements that are relevant to the user or the user's currentcircumstances. In any case, embodiments of the present invention permita user to, among other things, see announcements the user may havemissed and replay them, view the category of missed announcements and ashort synopsis thereof, enabling the user to judge if the user wouldlike to replay the announcements, and be notified if an announcementapplies to the user's specific situation.

Referring now to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, a more detailed system architectureand an implementation of an embodiment of the present invention will beshown and described. FIG. 2 shows the more detailed system architecturefor visualization of audio announcements and messages using augmentedreality (AR) according to illustrative embodiments, while FIG. 3 showsan implementation of an audio announcements visualization process 300using AR.

In one embodiment of the present invention, audio capture component 212of AR Announcement Tool 200 captures audio messages or announcements 204from an announcement source, such as a public announcement (PA) system,a speaker system, or a broadcast speaker 202 for processing at step 302.In some embodiments, this capturing can be performed directly by a PAsystem, a speaker system, or a broadcast speaker 202 (e.g., by abuilt-in digital recorder). In a direct capture method, PA/speakersystem 202 includes audio capture software. When an audio signal ofannouncement 204 is broadcast, PA system 202 captures and storesannouncement 204 as an audio file. In this method, all announcements canbe both captured in an audio file and simultaneously broadcast throughPA system 202. This method of direct capture may be suitable forpermanent solutions where a PA system can be directly modified, such asin airport terminals.

In other embodiments, a method of indirect capture of audio announcement204 can be performed in conjunction with embodiments of the presentinvention. In one embodiment, microphones 206 can be placed or mountedin a vicinity near PA/speaker system 202. These microphones 206 captureannouncements 204 as audio files, and can, in some embodiments, note alocation of capture in the file using, for example, a metadata tag. Thismethod of indirect capture may be suitable where direct access to PAsystem 202 is not possible or where PA system 202 is temporary, such asan outdoor concert.

In another embodiment, crowdsourcing can be used to captureannouncements or messages. In crowdsourcing, the microphone on a mobiledevice 208 in a location in which announcements may be broadcast can beenabled to detect and record audio announcements 204. For example,mobile device users can register for a mobile application on a mobiledevice 208 of a user that utilizes the mobile device 208 to perform thisfunction. In any case, when an announcement is made, mobile device 208can record the announcement and store it as an audio file or can forwardthe announcement to a processing location. In some embodiments, mobiledevice 208 can also note a location of capture and can save the locationwith the audio file and/or forward the location with the announcementusing, for example, a metadata tag. A location of capture can be, forexample, determined from a GPS (Global Positioning System) on usermobile device 208 or from location information from a set of beacons(e.g., installed around a public area where announcements are heard)used to pinpoint a user mobile device 208 location. This method ofindirect capture may be suitable where a group of participating userswish to capture announcements 204 without direct access to PA system202.

In any case, PA/speaker system 202, microphones 206, or crowdsourcedmobile devices 208A-N can transmit captured announcement/message 204 tocentral server 210, which receives announcement 204 at augmented reality(AR) announcement tool 200. Central server 210 can include a localserver, a remote server, a cloud-based service, or any intermediary typeof system.

In some embodiments, audio capture component 212 can further determine alocation source of audio announcements 204 and/or a type of recordingdevice used to capture audio announcements 204. For example, audiocapture component 212 can determine or select a type of audioannouncement 204 feed, such as direct capture from a public announcement(PA) system 202 or indirect capture by a set of system microphones 206or crowdsourcing devices 208A-N.

In some embodiments, audio capture component 212 can identify recordedsounds as announcement audio and filter announcement audio from othersounds, such as conversations and music. The filter may include speechrecognition, frequency recognition, keyword recognition, volumerecognition, content recognition, or any other technique now known orlater developed for deciphering broadcast audio from surrounding orambient sounds. A set of recordings captured by crowdsourcing can alsobe compared by audio capture component 212 to determine what recordingscontain announcements and what recordings are other noises. For example,if five different user devices 208 record the same audio speech, therecorded speech is more likely to be an announcement, whereas audiospeech recorded by only one of the five devices is more likely to be aprivate conversation. In other embodiments, audio capture component 212can check for a sound associated with announcements, such as a “chime”or “ding” when a PA system is engaged and begin recording in response tothe engagement sound or, in a case of an ongoing recording, mark theplace of the engagement sound in the recording as the beginning of anannouncement.

AR announcement tool 200 can further include a speech-to-texttranscriber component 214. At step 304, transcriber component 214analyzes and transcribes a captured audio file of announcement 204 tofiles containing a text-based transcript of the announcement audio file.In some embodiments, transcriber 214 may employ automatic transcription,such as an automatic transcription service like Dragon transcription(Dragon is a trademark of Nuance Communications Inc.). However, othersolutions for converting audio to text that are now known or laterdeveloped may also be used. In any case, AR announcement tool 200 canalso include a database tool component 226, which stores announcementaudio files and/or announcement textual files in an announcementdatabase 230. Database 230 may include, in some embodiments, storagesystem 34 (FIG. 1), utilizing any solution.

AR announcement tool 200 can further include a natural languageprocessing component 216 and an announcement tagger component 218. Atstep 306, natural language processing (NLP) component 216 can analyzethe transcribed textual file for keywords, names, locations, and otherinformation pertinent to a particular situation using natural languageprocessing (NLP). NLP is the ability of a computer program to understandhuman speech as it is spoken. NLP component 216 can include any naturallanguage processing technique now known or later developed. In someembodiments, NLP component 216 can analyze announcements 204 todetermine if the announcement relates to a particular user (e.g., if auser's name or associated gate are included in the announcement).

Based on the analyzed information from NLP component 216, announcementtagger 218 of AR announcement tool 200 can categorize anannouncement/message (e.g., general alert, delay notice, passengerrequest), create a synopsis describing an announcement (e.g., “do notleave bags unattended”), and/or associate the announcement with aparticular location (e.g., Gate 1). For example, announcement tagger 218can annotate an announcement 204 or announcement transcript with ametadata flag or other tag indicating a category, a synopsis, or alocation. Accordingly, in some embodiments, each announcement 204 canhave four properties associated with it: announcement content,announcement category, short synopsis of the announcement, and locationwhere the announcement occurred.

AR announcement tool 200 can further include a priority analysiscomponent 220. At optional step 308, priority analysis component 220 canfurther analyze text of announcement 204 using natural languageprocessing. Priority analysis component 220 determines whether aparticular announcement 204 has significant relevance to a given user.For example, in one embodiment, priority analysis component 220 candetermine if a user's name appears in announcement 204 by identifyingnames in announcement 204 and checking them against user database 228.In another embodiment, priority analysis component 220 can flag orassign a high priority or urgency for a particular user to anannouncement 204 containing that particular user's name. For example,the announcement: “Jim, Martin, and John are requested to check in atgate 8”, would raise a flag of high priority for users Jim, Martin, andJohn. In another embodiment, priority analysis component 220 candetermine if an announcement directly relates to the user. For example,priority analysis component 220 can determine if an announcementdescribes a change in travel plans and search user database 228 for anyusers with travel itineraries affected by the change and flag or assigna high priority for a particular user to that announcement.

In another embodiment, AR announcement tool 200 can send a texttranscript of an announcement/message 204 made in a general vicinity ofa user to a user's mobile device 234 for further analysis. A naturallanguage processing component stored on mobile device 234 of the usercan analyze the relevance of announcement 204 to the given user. In oneembodiment, if the natural language processing component of user device234 determines that the user's name appears in the announcement or theannouncement directly relates to the user (e.g., the announcementcontains keywords related to the user's travel plans or itinerary storedin the mobile device), then the announcement will be flagged or markedas high priority. For example, if a user is scheduled on Flight AA1 andthe announcement reads “Flight AA1 has changed gates”, the announcementwill be flagged as important.

In some embodiments, priority analysis component 220 or natural languageprocessing component 216 (e.g., stored on server 210 or stored on mobileuser device 234) can assign a priority score to an announcement. Thepriority score can be based on a determined importance of anannouncement 204, and can be weighted based on factors such as, but notlimited to, a name of a user in the announcement, a location associatedwith a user (e.g., a location of the user or a location entered by auser, such as a user's destination gate), a name of a flight/bus/train auser is scheduled to travel on, an event associated with the user (e.g.,a final boarding call for a flight of a user), and a set of keywords.Moreover, in some examples, announcement 204 can be rated on a scale(e.g., of 1-10) of importance or assigned a percent relevance to a user.A priority score can be based on keywords as well as situational words.For example, for a passenger on flight AA1, the announcement “Flight AA1has a gate change” is flagged with a high priority score, while “Welcomepassengers of flight AA1, we will begin the boarding process shortly” isassigned a lower priority score.

AR announcement tool 200 can further include a notification component222. In some embodiments, at optional step 310, notification component222 transmits a notification or alert associated with a flagged orpriority announcement to a device 234 of a user based on theabove-described analysis. Notifications can take the form of a textmessage (SMS), an email, or an in-app notification. In still otherembodiments, this announcement can appear in augmented realitydisplay/overlay 236 (described in further detail below) in forms suchas, but not limited to, a pop-up, an alert icon, or a blinking icon. Insome embodiments, a notification component can be stored on a userdevice 234 and can display a notification on user device 234, such asin-application. A notification type can be based on a priority score ofannouncement 204, such as a high priority announcement containing aparticular user's name. For example, a high priority announcement ofrelevance to a user may be displayed to the user immediately (e.g., bytext message or a pop-up), whereas a lower priority announcement ofrelevance to the user may be presented to the user as an augmentedannouncement icon with an alert indicator (e.g., blinking, a brightcolor) to denote that the announcement is relevant to the user when theuser looks at it. In further embodiments, notification component 222 canselect which mobile devices would be most appropriate to send thenotification to, for example based on a closeness or distance of amobile device to the vicinity of an announcement.

In further embodiments, a user may set an originating announcementlocation for notifications to user device 234. For example, a user mayselect a location from where announcements are made (e.g., announcementsmade from Gate 3) and select to have these announcements forwarded bynotification, as described above, to device 234 of the user. Theseannouncements, for example in the form of a textual transcript, can thenbe pushed to device 234 of the user in real-time. Accordingly, a usercan set an announcement originating location and then receive anyannouncements made at that location on a mobile device, even when theuser is located elsewhere (e.g., in a restaurant, a washroom, a shop,etc.). In still further embodiments, notification component 222 canselect a set of locations to associate with a user, based on, forexample: a location of user device 234 or a travel plan of the user,such as an itinerary including departure gates/terminals, travel routes,and transportation means.

For example, if a user's itinerary says that the user will depart fromGate 5 at Terminal C, walking through Terminal B, then notificationcomponent 222 can associate the user with Gate 5, Terminal C, andTerminal B and can push to user device 234 announcements made from orabout Gate 5 and general announcements made from or about Terminals Band C. Continuing this example, if location information from user device234 indicates that the user is in Terminal B and an announcement is madeindicating that an escalator connecting Terminal B to Terminal C isclosed for maintenance, then, once priority analysis component 220 hasdetermined that the announcement is of high importance to the userbecause a travel route of the user is affected, notification component222 can push a notification of this announcement to user device 234.

AR announcement tool 200 can further include an augmented reality (AR)display configuration component 224. At step 312, AR displayconfiguration component 224 creates an augmented reality (AR)overlay/display 236 for a user device 234 to augment announcements 204.A user device 234 can include, but is not limited to: a mobile phone,such as a smart phone; a mobile device, such as a tablet; or a mobilehead-mounted display, such as smart glasses, etc.

AR display configuration component 224 can create an AR overlay 236 thatassociates a user with a physical location at which the user is pointinga camera of a user device 234. In one embodiment, AR displayconfiguration component 224 can create an AR view showing past andcurrent announcements at a place of origin of the announcements (e.g., abroadcast speaker, a gate desk). For example, a user could look at abroadcast speaker 202, in an AR environment provided by a user device234 with AR capabilities, and see icons 238 showing, for instance, thepast three announcements 204 from that broadcast speaker 202. A user canview the AR overlay 236 by viewing that particular physical location viaa display screen of user device 234, such as head mounted display device234A or mobile device 234B.

AR announcement tool 200 can determine a location of a user or userdevice 234 by any method now known or later discovered. In oneembodiment, server 210 can receive location information from a GPS(Global Positioning System) on user device 234. In another embodiment,server 210 can receive location information from a set of beacons (e.g.,installed around a public area subject to announcements) used topinpoint a user device location. In still yet another embodiment, server210 can receive images from user device 234 and through objectrecognition, determine a location and area view of user device 234. Thislocation can be used to set the announcement location from which theuser wishes to receive announcements and/or to indicate that the userhas moved from the announcement location and that AR announcement tool200 should forward announcements to the user.

In some embodiments, AR display configuration component 224 of ARannouncement tool 200 can determine what locations are most appropriateto display an announcement in an augmented reality based on a content ofthe announcement. In further embodiments, AR display configurationcomponent 224 can remove some announcements from the AR display after apredetermined time has passed in order to prevent announcements frombecoming stale. In still other embodiments, AR display configurationcomponent 224 can condense or remove redundant announcements.

In one embodiment, AR display/overlay 236 can display an icon 238 forannouncement 204 indicating a category of announcement 204 along with ashort summary 240 of announcement 204. Users can activate icons 238 toplay back announcements the user may have missed and/or to view a textof the announcements 204. In some embodiments, augmentation occurs at asource of announcement 204 or a place related to the announcement (e.g.,an announcement relating to a gate change may appear at both theoriginal gate and the new gate).

In some further embodiments, AR display configuration component 224 canconfigure AR overlay 236 to a particular user. This AR overlay can bebased on a particular ID or location of a user 232. For example, a userlooking at a physical broadcast announcement speaker via a displayscreen of a user device 234 can be permitted to view announcementsrelevant to the user previously made at that broadcast speaker in ARoverlay 236 over the broadcast speaker. In another example, a useridentified as departing from Gate 1 may be permitted to viewannouncements relating to Gate 1, but not Gate 2, in the augmentedreality.

In further embodiments, AR display configuration component 224 canconfigure an AR overlay based on information retrieved from userdatabase 228. For example, user database 228 can contain informationsuch as, but not limited to, a user name, a user's destination, a user'sflight/bus/train travel plan or itinerary, a set ofgates/terminals/platforms to which a user is assigned, a user'smembership in a rewards group (e.g., a platinum membership), and so on.In some embodiments, user database 228 can be populated with informationfrom users who have registered for an augmented reality (AR) service,for example through an application on user device 234. In someembodiments, a user may provide information to an on-device applicationsuch as a user name, a user's destination, a user's flight/bus/traintravel plan/itinerary, a set of gates/terminals/platforms to which auser is assigned, a user's membership in a rewards group, and so on.

In some embodiments, a user can select what types of announcements andwhat forms of AR are presented on mobile user device 234 (e.g., byconfiguring an application stored on mobile user device 234). In oneembodiment, a user may opt-in to receiving high priority announcementsand notifications in an augmented reality environment, but declineviewing general announcements in the augmented reality environment. Inanother embodiment, a user may choose to receive announcements in the ARenvironment as icons, or as a list of announcement synopses. In anycase, a user may be presented with a setting on a mobile device toselect what kinds of announcements the user is interested in and howthose announcements are to be treated.

At step 314, AR display configuration component 224 transmits ARoverlay/display 236 to user device 234 for display. This transfer can,for example, be in response to a request from a user or a device of auser for augmented reality (AR) information. In another example, thetransfer can be in response to an activation of an augmented capabilityof user device 234 when a user opens an augmented reality (AR)application on device 234 and points device 234 to look at something. Atuser device 234, AR overlay/display 236 is displayed on a displaysurface of device 234. In one embodiment, a user device 234 can be awearable device such as smart glasses. Smart glasses and similarwearables may contain a head mounted display through which a user cansee a real environment and view an AR overlay projected on the displayover the real environment. The AR overlay can be displayed as augmentedannouncement icons 238 over a location at which the user is looking. Inanother embodiment, a user device 234 can be a mobile device with acamera and display screen, such as a smartphone. A mobile device candisplay augmented announcement icons 238 in the mobile device displayover a live feed from the mobile device camera. In one embodiment, ARdisplay configuration component 224 can configure announcement icons 238to be placed or associated with their source, for example, over abroadcast speaker 202 from where the announcement came. In anotherembodiment, AR display configuration component 224 can placeannouncement icons 238 in a logical location related to a content of theannouncement, for example over a boarding gate at an airport.

It can be appreciated that the approaches disclosed herein can be usedwithin any computer system (e.g., server 210) for visualization of audioannouncements and messages using AR, as shown in FIG. 1 (e.g., computersystem 12). In this case, AR announcement tool 200 can be provided, andone or more computerized systems for performing the processes describedin embodiments of the invention can be obtained and deployed to computersystem 12. To this extent, the deployment can include one or more of:(1) installing program code on a computing device, such as a computersystem, from a computer-readable medium or device; (2) adding one ormore computing devices to the infrastructure; and (3) incorporatingand/or modifying one or more existing systems of the computer system toenable the computer system to perform the process actions of embodimentsof the invention. In some embodiments, AR announcement tool 200 can beprovided as a program modules 42 stored in memory 28 (FIG. 1). Any ofaudio announcement 204, text of audio announcement 204, and userinformation may be stored in storage system 34, also stored in memory28.

In some embodiments, it may be desirable to deploy AR announcement tool200 locally to prevent time delays between a request by a user and asystem response. However, embodiments of the present invention may alsobe deployed, for example, as a cloud-based service or as anyintermediary type of system.

As depicted in FIG. 4, in one embodiment, a system (e.g., computersystem 12) carries out the methodologies disclosed herein. Shown is aprocess flowchart 400 for visualizing audio messages using augmentedreality. At step 402, a user is associated with an announcementlocation, the association being based on personal information associatedwith a user. At step 404, audio is captured from the associatedlocation. At step 406, the captured audio is filter to yield a set ofaudio messages. At step 408, the set of audio messages are analyzed todetermine, for each audio message of the set of audio messages, whetherthe audio message is relevant to the user. At step 410, informationassociated with the set of audio messages is forwarded to the mobileuser device.

Process flowchart 400 of FIG. 4 illustrates the architecture,functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems,methods, and computer program products according to various embodimentsof the present invention. In this regard, each block in the flowchart orblock diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion ofinstructions, which includes one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of theorder noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

Some of the functional components described in this specification havebeen labeled as systems or units in order to more particularly emphasizetheir implementation independence. For example, a system or unit may beimplemented as a hardware circuit including custom VLSI circuits or gatearrays, off-the-shelf semiconductors such as logic chips, transistors,or other discrete components. A system or unit may also be implementedin programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays,programmable array logic, programmable logic devices or the like. Asystem or unit may also be implemented in software for execution byvarious types of processors. A system or unit or component of executablecode may, for instance, include one or more physical or logical blocksof computer instructions, which may, for instance, be organized as anobject, procedure, or function. Nevertheless, the executables of anidentified system or unit need not be physically located together, butmay include disparate instructions stored in different locations which,when joined logically together, include the system or unit and achievethe stated purpose for the system or unit.

Further, a system or unit of executable code could be a singleinstruction, or many instructions, and may even be distributed overseveral different code segments, among different programs, and acrossseveral memory devices. Similarly, operational data may be identifiedand illustrated herein within modules, and may be embodied in anysuitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure.The operational data may be collected as a single data set, or may bedistributed over different locations including over different storagedevices and disparate memory devices.

Furthermore, systems/units may also be implemented as a combination ofsoftware and one or more hardware devices. For instance, program/utility40 may be embodied in the combination of a software executable codestored on a memory medium (e.g., memory storage device). In a furtherexample, a system or unit may be the combination of a processor thatoperates on a set of operational data.

As noted above, some of the embodiments may be embodied in hardware. Thehardware may be referenced as a hardware element. In general, a hardwareelement may refer to any hardware structures arranged to perform certainoperations. In one embodiment, for example, the hardware elements mayinclude any analog or digital electrical or electronic elementsfabricated on a substrate. The fabrication may be performed usingsilicon-based integrated circuit (IC) techniques, such as complementarymetal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), bipolar, and bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS)techniques, for example. Examples of hardware elements may includeprocessors, microprocessors, circuits, circuit elements (e.g.,transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors, and so forth), integratedcircuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmablelogic devices (PLD), digital signal processors (DSP), field programmablegate array (FPGA), logic gates, registers, semiconductor devices, chips,microchips, chip sets, and so forth. However, the embodiments are notlimited in this context.

Any of the components provided herein can be deployed, managed,serviced, etc., by a service provider that offers to deploy or integratecomputing infrastructure with respect to a process for visualization ofaudio announcements using augmented reality (AR) Thus, embodimentsherein disclose a process for supporting computer infrastructure,including integrating, hosting, maintaining, and deployingcomputer-readable code into a computing system (e.g., computer system12), wherein the code in combination with the computing system iscapable of performing the functions described herein.

In another embodiment, the invention provides a method that performs theprocess steps of the invention on a subscription, advertising, and/orfee basis. That is, a service provider, such as a Solution Integrator,can offer to create, maintain, support, etc., a process forvisualization of audio announcements using AR. In this case, the serviceprovider can create, maintain, support, etc., a computer infrastructurethat performs the process steps of the invention for one or morecustomers. In return, the service provider can receive payment from thecustomer(s) under a subscription and/or fee agreement, and/or theservice provider can receive payment from the sale of advertisingcontent to one or more third parties.

Also noted above, some embodiments may be embodied in software. Thesoftware may be referenced as a software element. In general, a softwareelement may refer to any software structures arranged to perform certainoperations. In one embodiment, for example, the software elements mayinclude program instructions and/or data adapted for execution by ahardware element, such as a processor. Program instructions may includean organized list of commands including words, values, or symbolsarranged in a predetermined syntax that, when executed, may cause aprocessor to perform a corresponding set of operations.

The present invention may also be a computer program product. Thecomputer program product may include a computer readable storage medium(or media) having computer readable program instructions thereon forcausing a processor to carry out aspects of the present invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice, such as a hardware storage device. The computer readable storagemedium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic storagedevice, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, anelectromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or anysuitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of morespecific examples of the computer readable storage medium includes thefollowing: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random accessmemory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory(SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digitalversatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanicallyencoded device such as punch-cards or raised structures in a groovehaving instructions recorded thereon, and any suitable combination ofthe foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used herein, isnot to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radiowaves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagneticwaves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g.,light pulses passing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signalstransmitted through a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may includecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of theorder noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

It is apparent that there has been provided herein approaches tovisualizing audio announcements using augmented reality. While theinvention has been particularly shown and described in conjunction withexemplary embodiments, it will be appreciated that variations andmodifications will occur to those skilled in the art.

Therefore, it is to be understood that the appended claims are intendedto cover all such modifications and changes that fall within the truespirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of communicating audio messages usingaugmented reality, comprising: analyzing a set of captured messages todetermine, for each message of the set of messages, whether the messageis relevant to a user; associating at least one message of the set ofmessages with a real-world object over which to display the at least onemessage in an augmented reality environment; assigning a time limit tothe at least one message based on the analyzed relevance to the user;and displaying, in the case that a current time is within the timelimit, the at least one message on a display of a mobile deviceassociated with the user when a camera of the mobile device is directedat the real-world object associated with the at least one message. 2.The method of claim 1, the displaying the at least one message furthercomprising: associating the at least one message with a set of icons inan augmented reality environment; and displaying the set of icons overthe real-world object.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the relevanceto the user is based on at least one item selected from the groupconsisting of: a location of the mobile device, a travel plan of theuser, and a selection by the user of a location.
 4. The method of claim1, the method further comprising receiving an electronic audio file ofthe at least one message from an announcement broadcast system or a setof microphones positioned near a broadcast speaker of an announcementbroadcast system.
 5. The method of claim 1, the method furthercomprising receiving an audio file of the at least one message from aplurality of crowd-sourced mobile devices, the plurality ofcrowd-sourced mobile devices each having a microphone and beingconfigured to record, save, and transmit an audio file.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, the analyzing further comprising: applying natural languageprocessing to a text of each message of the set of messages, the naturallanguage processing being based on a set of keywords, the set ofkeywords selected from a group consisting of: a set of names, a set oflocations, and a set of situational terms; and marking a message of theset of messages as relevant to a user in the case that the naturallanguage processing detects text in the message selected from the groupconsisting of: a name of the user, a location associated with the user,a transportation vehicle associated with the user, and a set of keywordsassociated with the user.
 7. The method of claim 1, the method furthercomprising forwarding a notification to the user, the notificationselected from the group consisting of: a text message, an email, anin-application notification, and an augmented reality notification. 8.The method of claim 1, the analyzing further comprising: determiningwhether a message of the set of messages includes a change to aschedule; searching a user database to determine if an itinerary of theuser is affected by the change to the schedule; and flagging the messageas relevant to the user in the case that the change to the scheduleaffects the itinerary of the user.
 9. The method of claim 1, the methodfurther comprising: assigning a priority score to each message of theset of messages; and forwarding the at least one message to the mobiledevice associated with the user in a notification format correspondingto the priority score assigned to the at least one message.
 10. Acomputer system for communicating audio messages using augmentedreality, the computer system comprising: a memory medium comprisingprogram instructions; a bus coupled to the memory medium; and aprocessor, for executing the program instructions, coupled to anaugmented reality announcement tool via the bus that when executing theprogram instructions causes the system to: analyze a set of capturedmessages to determine, for each message of the set of messages, whetherthe message is relevant to a user; associate at least one message of theset of messages with a real-world object over which to display the atleast one message in an augmented reality environment; assign a timelimit to the at least one message based on the analyzed relevance to theuser; and display, in the case that a current time is within the timelimit, the at least one message on a display of a mobile deviceassociated with the user when a camera of the mobile device is directedat the real-world object associated with the at least one message. 11.The computer system of claim 10, the instructions further causing thesystem to: associate the at least one message with a set of icons in anaugmented reality environment; and display the set of icons over thereal-world object.
 12. The computer system of claim 10, wherein therelevance to the user is based on at least one item selected from thegroup consisting of: a location of the mobile device, a travel plan ofthe user, and a selection by the user of a location.
 13. The computersystem of claim 10, the instructions further causing the system toreceive an electronic audio file of the at least one message from anannouncement broadcast system or a set of microphones positioned near abroadcast speaker of an announcement broadcast system.
 14. The computersystem of claim 10, the instructions further causing the system toreceive an audio file of the at least one message from a plurality ofcrowd-sourced mobile devices, the plurality of crowd-sourced mobiledevices each having a microphone and being configured to record, save,and transmit an audio file.
 15. The computer system of claim 10, theinstructions further causing the system to: apply natural languageprocessing to a text of each message of the set of messages, the naturallanguage processing being based on a set of keywords, the set ofkeywords selected from a group consisting of: a set of names, a set oflocations, and a set of situational terms; and mark a message of the setof messages as relevant to a user in the case that the natural languageprocessing detects text in the message selected from the groupconsisting of: a name of the user, a location associated with the user,a transportation vehicle associated with the user, and a set of keywordsassociated with the user.
 16. The computer system of claim 10, theinstructions further causing the system to forward a notification to theuser, the notification selected from the group consisting of: a textmessage, an email, an in-application notification, and an augmentedreality notification.
 17. The computer system of claim 10, theinstructions further causing the system to: determine whether a messageof the set of messages includes a change to a schedule; search a userdatabase to determine if an itinerary of the user is affected by thechange to the schedule; and flag the message as relevant to the user inthe case that the change to the schedule affects the itinerary of theuser.
 18. The computer system of claim 10, the instructions furthercausing the system to: assign a priority score to each message of theset of messages; and forward the at least one message to the mobiledevice associated with the user in a notification format correspondingto the priority score assigned to the at least one message.
 19. Acomputer program product for communicating audio messages usingaugmented reality, the computer program product comprising a computerreadable storage device, and program instructions stored on the computerreadable storage device, to: analyze a set of captured messages todetermine, for each message of the set of messages, whether the messageis relevant to a user; associate at least one message of the set ofmessages with a real-world object over which to display the at least onemessage in an augmented reality environment; assign a time limit to theat least one message based on the analyzed relevance to the user; anddisplay, in the case that a current time is within the time limit, theat least one message on a display of a mobile device associated with theuser when a camera of the mobile device is directed at the real-worldobject associated with the at least one message.
 20. The computerprogram product of claim 19, the computer readable storage devicefurther comprising instructions to: associate the at least one messagewith a set of icons in an augmented reality environment; and display theset of icons over the real-world object.